OLD ORCHARD BEACH – Give Cody Dube an early run or two and you’re feeling pretty good. Give him seven? Game over.

Windham scored seven runs in the second inning, using aggressive baserunning, timely hits and some uncharacteristic Post 51 errors, and Dube took it from there.

Dube allowed just four hits as Windham stung Post 51 13-1 in the opening round of the American Legion baseball state tournament Wednesday at The Ballpark. The game was stopped after seven innings because of the 10-run mercy rule.

“Overall we just played well,” said Matt McLean, who drove in three runs with a pair of singles for Windham. “There’s no other way to put it. Baserunning, hitting, pitching everything was just right on.”

Windham will play Westbrook in a winner’s-bracket game at 4 p.m. Thursday. Post 51, which includes many of the players from Messalonskee’s Class A state title team, will play Fayette-Staples in the loser’s bracket at 9:30 a.m. Thursday.

“Great way to start the state tournament,” said Windham Coach Nick Dubay. “This was one of the better performances we’ve had, even going back to the high school season, for a full game.”

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Conversely, it was perhaps the worst game for Post 51, which also lost the first game of the Zone 2 tournament but came back to win it. Post 51 committed five errors.

“We haven’t had many games like that,” said Coach Tom Dexter, “but Windham played a very good game, their pitcher did an excellent job, they made the plays on defense and put the ball in play. We were a little off defensively. It just didn’t seem that we could create anything.”

Windham sent 11 batters to the plate in the second, scoring seven runs, all after two outs.

McLean led off with a walk, then stole second. Two outs later, Calvin Field singled to right, scoring McLean. Nate Boyle walked. Mitch Hodge singled in a run, then Robbie Hamilton walked to load the bases.

Blair Blaisdell appeared to get out of the inning by striking out Joe Francoeur, but a passed ball allowed a run to score and reloaded the bases.

Dube singled in a run, a dribbler down the third-base line that nicked the bag as it rolled past. McLean lined a single to right scoring two and it was 6-0. “Patience was a key,” said McLean. “Just sat on a fastball and did what I was supposed to do with it.”

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Dube then scored on a throwing error in a rundown and Windham had a 7-0 lead.

“It’s a plus to be up seven runs in a game like this,” said Dube. “We do have kids who tend to relax and that can potentially lead to a bad situation. But we kept building and building on it.”

Dube didn’t walk a batter and struck out five. “It’s tough to come back down 7-0 facing one of the best pitchers in the state,” said Dubay. “Usually two runs are enough for him.”

Windham ran the bases aggressively, turning every Post 51 miscue into runs. Tanner Laberge’s two-run single in the sixth made it 12-1.

Staff Writer Mike Lowe can be contacted at 791-6422 or at:

mlowe@pressherald.com

Twitter: MikeLowe

 


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